1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an apparatus for lifting and supporting a potted plant. In particular, the invention relates to a flexible apparatus that surrounds a potted plant and that can be used to easily remove the potted plant from a decorative planter.
2. Description of Related Art
Potted plants, including flowering bushes, trees and decorative plants are often displayed in decorative, expensive planters. The potted plants and their soil may be contained in a less expensive container such as a nursery pot, for example. The nursery pot may be constructed of plastic or clay materials, for example. The nursery pot is placed inside the decorative planter.
All potted plants require routine maintenance including soaking and draining, feeding, replacing soil and pruning. Many of these maintenance actions require that the potted plants be easily accessible, such as at a workbench. If the potted plants were left in their decorative planter, the decorative planter could be damaged during the plant maintenance actions and access to the potted plants would be restricted. Accordingly, for routine maintenance the nursery pot is often removed from the decorative planter. After the maintenance is complete, the nursery pot is replaced in the decorative planter.
FIG. 1 shows a conventional nursery pot 10. The nursery pot 10 is in the shape of a truncated cone. A shallow rim portion 11 surrounds the top portion of the nursery pot 10, and may be used for grasping and lifting the nursery pot 10. The nursery pot 10 includes a bottom 12 used to retain potted plants 14 and soil 15. The bottom 12 is provided with a drain hole 13 that allows excess water to drain from the soil 15, which helps prevent damage to the potted plants 14.
Removal of the nursery pot 10 from the decorative planter is often difficult because the nursery pot 10 may be heavy and of a large size. In addition, the nursery pot 10 may fit snugly inside the decorative planter making it difficult to grasp the nursery pot. The rim 11 may not provide a secure grip for removing the nursery pot 10 because of its lack of depth. Finally, the rim 11 may deteriorate and crack with age, making removal of the nursery pot 10 from the decorative planter difficult.